Recently, a Reddit user shared their gardening woes on the r/gardening community, lamenting the mistake they made when they sprayed “Repel-All” (presumably meaning Repels-All) granules directly onto their garden instead of spreading them around the perimeter.
The post, accompanied by a photo of a sparsely planted garden that appears to have been doused in the granular material, has attracted the attention of seasoned gardening enthusiasts.
Photo credit: Reddit
A Redditor expressed concern, asking, “What should I do? Will it make my whole garden inedible? Can I just wash it off? I'm tempted to liberally spray everything and wash it off, but I'm worried that it will soak into the roots.”
“I would be very sad if this mistake meant that people could no longer eat the vegetables from my garden.”
While this gardening fail is unfortunate, it's important to gently guide beginners in the right direction when they make beginner mistakes. After all, this Reddit user was on the right path towards creating a more sustainable ecosystem just by having a garden in the first place.
Eco-friendly alternatives to traditional lawns, like native lawns and gardens, not only save maintenance costs and time, but also benefit humanity by conserving water, lowering water bills, creating healthier ecosystems for pollinators, and ultimately protecting our food supply.
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To reap these benefits while reducing your environmental impact, consider replacing even part of your traditional lawn with native plants, clover, buffalo grass, or xeriscape. These low-maintenance options can help you create a beautiful, sustainable, and vibrant outdoor space.
In response to the Reddit user's post, more experienced gardeners offered encouragement and advice, saying that while the gardener may have had a close call, to be careful with the use of chemicals.
One user wrote, “You need to read the ingredients carefully, especially the active ingredient. I don't know what type you bought, but Repell All [Repels-All] It's mostly cloves and garlic so it's fine. Still, I think it's better to wash your vegetables before eating them.”
Another added: “The active ingredients are rotten eggs, cloves and garlic, so as long as you spray the granular stuff and it doesn't get on plants you actually plan to eat, I think you're fine.”
A third commenter pointed out: “It's going to be a long time before you can harvest from that garden, so by then anything you put in there will probably be washed away.”
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